Downtown Buena Vista buildings go to auction

Updated Oct. 29

Some things just don’t work out as planned, but that doesn’t mean it’s the end.

Roanoke developer Ed Walker purchased 16 properties in downtown Buena Vista for $1.3 million during 2017 and 2018, with a plan to revitalize the small city nestled in the Blue Ridge Mountains just southeast of Lexington.

Walker had planned to put 12 buildings and lots up for auction in October after all but a few failed to sell on the open market. However, four properties went under contract in October by local developers and investors — just as Walker had hoped. The remaining eight buildings and lots will be put up for auction with bidding opening Nov. 1 and closing Nov. 17 at noon.

Known for revitalizing small towns, Walker planned a multiyear Buena Vista initiative — nicknamed GoBV — to “catalyze progress in any way possible.” He made GoBV the basis of his Washington & Lee University School of Law class about social entrepreneurship and real estate development. Students helped with all aspects, including acquisitions, financing and collaborating with architects, engineers and city planners.

“This was a nonprofit effort designed to be helpful to Buena Vista while creating an applied learning experience for law students,” says Walker, who received his law degree from W&L.
During the project, Walker’s team demolished one building and stabilized others, investing a total of $1.7 million, says project manager Jamie Goodin. Most structures are eligible for historic tax credits to offset costs.

Now the buildings are ready for the next step — buyers with business ideas, says Jim Woltz, owner of Roanoke’s Woltz & Associates Inc., which handled the auction. “This little town is poised to be a nice getaway.”

Walker says he always intended that he and his students would “play a small part at the beginning of the process and then let local and regional ownership do what outsiders can’t.” He hopes the properties will go to purchasers who will revitalize Buena Vista — “community-minded owner occupants and investors.”

Before the auction, a philanthropist purchased a former Ford dealership in the city, which will be donated to Dabney S. Lancaster Community College to be used as a training center for trades such as welding, machinery and diesel engine repair starting in 2022.

The city’s government also is finalizing its own downtown revitalization plan.

Buena Vista is still figuring out the right mix of retail, entertainment, restaurants and offices, says Director of Community & Economic Development Tom Roberts, but Walker “helped moved the conversation forward.”

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